CHENNAI: With just two days left to go for Chennaiyin FC’s first home game against Kerala Blasters, the groundsmen at Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium face a serious task to get the turf ready for match.
After relentless rain in Chennai over the last two days, the turf at the stadium, which was subject to last-minute renovation efforts after the Bangalore team was shifted to Chennai, has suffered further damage. Groundsmen were seen soaking up pools of water on the turf on Tuesday, but with heavy rains forecast over the next week, they will have to do a lot more before the match on Tuesday.
Chennaiyin had to cancel a practice session at the stadium on Friday, after concluding that the turf was not in a condition to play on, and were restricted to just gym work. The team eventually practised at the Gateway International School on Saturday, but are yet to get a feel of their home stadium since returning from Goa. Both Balwant Singh and Abhishek Das, who participated in a press met on Sunday, admitted they were yet to even see the stadium after returning from Goa.
Sources close to the team said the worst case scenario in their books was not being able to practise at the stadium at all before the match. “We fully expect the match to go ahead. The worst case scenario as of now is that we might not be able to train at the stadium before the match. However, we do hope that the weather clears up,” sources said.
In the unlikely event of the match being cancelled, both teams will get one point each.